POSITION: Executive Director for the last 6 years
LOCATION: San Diego County
PHONE: (858) 485-9904
WHAT DOES THE ORGANIZATION DO? We partner with U.S. churches to mobilize adults on short-term mission trips to help churches overseas start new churches.
YOUR PRIMARY DUTIES: Recruit, train and manage a skilled team of staff to serve the Church in her Great Commission privilege of declaring God's glory to people of every tribe, tongue and nation on the planet, and leaving behind new churches.
WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO ACCOMPLISH? This year we are trusting God to use our team to mobilize churches to help start 190 new churches on 47 church planting campaigns in 21 countries.
WHAT AREA OF EXPERTISE OR SPECIALTY DO YOU HAVE OR ARE YOU KNOWN FOR? We are known for training adult teams of Americans, most of whom have never shared their faith in their lives, to go overseas and trust God to do great and supernatural things in their hearts, and in the hearts of the lost with the end result being new churches planted. We believe the Great Commission isn't "go and make converts." But rather it is "go and make disciples." The amazing thing is that God can use a small team to help start multiple new churches in one week.
WHERE DO YOU FEEL THE LORD IS LEADING THIS ORGANIZATION? God is leading us into a deeper commitment of helping the persecuted church and taking the gospel to people who have never even heard the name of Jesus.
WHAT IS FRUSTRATING TO YOU? I know that 98% of the people who go with us on these Faith Adventures on mission with God come back and say that it was the greatest spiritual experience of their life. The frustrating thing is getting people to take that first faith step to obey God and go.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST IN YOUR JOB? As much as I love seeing people come to Christ in these different countries, the thing I love most is seeing Americans who are scared to death on the first day out on the field come back at the end of the day glowing with the excitement of having watched God work. I watch people go from wimps to warriors. And then I get to watch many of those people go home and make a huge difference in their churches. What an honor. I also love being used as a tool in the hand of God to bring help to our brothers and sisters in Christ who are risking their lives for the sake of the gospel against all odds. I'll never forget our first trip to a former head hunting tribe in Northeast India. God used us to open doors to villages that our brothers and sisters in Christ had been praying for 20-30 years.
HOW CAN PEOPLE PRAY FOR YOU OR YOUR ORGANIZATION? Please pray for believers to GO, and pray for GMF as we are growing. Since my wife and I moved to San Diego in 1996, our team has grown from just the two of us to close to 50 people.
DO YOU HAVE A NEED FOR VOLUNTEERS? Yes, we have a great need for volunteers who want to be a part of GMF's team, by committing a given number of hours or days a week to help in our ministry office in Rancho Bernardo.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR FAMILY: My wife, Lorie and I have been married for 11 years. She traveled with me for several years until the Lord blessed us with children. Jonathan, our oldest, is six years old, Joshua is four and Kimberly is three.
WHAT IS YOUR HOME CHURCH AND YOUR INVOLVEMENT? Lorie and I met at New Hope Church in Rancho Penasquitos. We have been members there for 12 years and have been involved in a variety of ministries over the years. Currently, Lorie helps give leadership to the Women's Bible Study and I am very involved working with the pastor in New Hope mission and vision.
IS THERE A BOOK THAT HAS MADE AN IMPACT ON YOUR LIFE? John Piper's book Let the Nations be Glad has rocked my world and had a profound impact on me.
IS THERE A "NUGGET" YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE? There is great joy in connecting with God's mission on earth. Join us on a 7-12 day "Go To Grow" mission trip and experience God's glory and His power in ways you have never imagined!